Cardinal
Overview Runefox Cardinal (FFCS-901), formerly (FFCS-721), is a decommissioned first generation Faux-Class Construct under the Great Equestrian Fleet. One of the earlier prototypes made during the Second Changeling War, he and his kin were designed to allow autonomous control of up to eight frigates, or one carrier each. Put into service near the tail end of the war, Cardinal saw little in the way of actual action, being assigned to the shipyard Equineral for a large part of the conflict. Nonetheless, Cardinal and his ship would be involved in two major operations as the war drew to a close. Cardinal's assigned ship was EQN Equineral (pennant number 721) till its loss during the Battle of Karelia, and would continue serving on-board her successor EQN Equineral II (pennant number 901) till decommissioning. Transferred onto various civilian ships as a navigational aid, Cardinal thereafter would continue to serve the Fleet in civilian activities before being destroyed along with his assigned ship during a jump-gate malfunction. Design and Description One of the first generation Faux-Class constructs built after the war, Cardinal and his kin represent a shift in the Great Equestrian Fleet's ship management methods, intended to reduce the risk of sabotage and destruction of major Fleet assets. Because of uncertainties in the proposed roles of these constructs at the time, they were designed with flexibility in mind, sacrificing computing power and command ability for a more mobile frame capable of terrestrial operations as well. Arriving too late in the war to have any real effect on the outcome, they were phased out almost as soon as they were completed, with dedicated command constructs taking most ship-related tasks. Due to their inherent flexibility, however, many in the Faux-Class lineage were quickly relegated to other roles in the Fleet. These would include surveillance, planetary observation, management and research. Control Systems Like most of the Faux-Class constructs, Cardinal's systems were built into an iconic disc-shaped housing, affectionately dubbed the "Frisbee". Built of Crystal Pony manufactured crystal steel, this allowed each construct to function independently from their assigned vessel, at the cost of processing power and necessitating ship modifications to allow for proper interfacing between the two. The housing also holds maneuvering and projection systems, with eight navigation cameras and two standard cameras for terrain recognition and avoidance. Most of these systems are duplicated in the housing, allowing for some degree of damage to be sustained without major impairments in function. Like his kin, Cardinal also possesses a crystal computing core at the heart of his housing, serving as both an anchor for spell-casting and conventional code. Handling all non-mechanical tasks, the core is responsible for controlling most other systems, and serves as the root of his personality. Abilities Shared All Faux-Class constructs share the same basic capabilities besides commanding ships, that being flight (to some degree) and the ability to change form (to certain extents). The capability to fly, or more accurately magically levitate is the default travel method of all constructs, and generally is their only way to move around without needing an external factor. While still maintaining a guise, the upper speed of such constructs approaches their physical canid counterparts, around 50 km/h (30 mph). By dropping their guise completely, this limit can be increased up to and exceeding 120km/h (75 mph). The energy required to stay aloft increases with height however, and most constructs stick to hovering just enough to maintain a valid guise and no more. The capability to change form is more heavily restricted in comparison, and usually requires a formal request be forwarded to relevant authorities before another form can be assumed. All Faux-class constructs by default are given a vulpine guise, but ship crews are given the chance to freely choose another animal to mimic upon first delivery. While restricted to the animal they were picked as, changes of coat color are less restrictive, and most constructs bear at least 2 to 3 different coat variations depending on situation and necessity. Cardinal himself has 3 different coat variations, listed below. Fleet Issue - The standard coat when in service. Contains all required insignia and markings. Artika - An arctic variant of the standard coat. Uses the tundra survey insignia instead of the standard one. Covert Reconfiguration - Resembles a normal fox coat. Hides all insignia and markings. Rarely used. Harmonic Drive Unique to only a few in the Faux-Class, the Harmonic Drive is a miniaturized version of a standard starship reactor. While unwieldy and only useful outside normal shipboard operations, it allows a construct to actively siphon energy from any magical source to recharge itself. With the proper calibrations however, it can also be used to emulate a recorded magical signature, acting as a weak spellcasting tool. Further still, it can be used as a surprisingly effective deflection tool by redirecting magical energy, given sufficient understanding of the nature of the magic involved. Used in conjunction with the Modular Panel System (see below), Cardinal can use the Drive to attain rather impressive results, though usually requiring an external magical projectile to redirect in the first place. "The Flock" Weaponry "Daybreak" Thermal Lance "Peacock" Modular Panel System Twin Phasewhips/Phaseblades Sawblade History Pre-BLN Early Service Evacuation of Karelia Battle for Kindness Reassignment Decomissioning Fate Post-BLN Arrival -Rift (Pinkie, Twilight, Cookie) -Reassignment (Trixie Clones) First Survey -Location One (Phantomhive Manor, Taako) -Location Two (Fantasy Costco) -Location Three (Wayne Manor, Grell) -Confrontation (Marisa, Suzy) -Extended Mission (Snake Tsuchinoko, Marisa's House) -Return to Trixie Clone Base Second Survey - Wayne Manor (Five) Personality (A rough guide to how your character tends to behave) Category:Characters